Last month, NSAR was pleased to facilitate a roundtable discussion on the future of skills in collaboration with PA Consulting. It was fantastic to see senior rail industry figures comparing notes with colleagues in other sectors like military, aviation and advanced manufacturing. The discussions focused on understanding how approaches to strategic workforce planning, competence management and training could be transformed to address employee skills challenges. We discovered that the challenges faced by each sector are similar – questions of how to understand competence in an increasingly digital world, respond to skills shortages and increase social value. Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to the discussion.
You will also have seen our email last month with an update from our Head of Policy and Engagement on the Prime Minister’s reform package to boost apprenticeships. We welcome the provision of more support for SMEs to offer apprenticeships. NSAR’s Apprenticeship Agency service – our own effort to support SMEs with apprenticeships – has hit the ground running and is in final discussions to help multiple organisations take on apprentices risk-free.
I applaud these forward-thinking organisations who understand the importance, for themselves and the industry, of investing in skills. I know that many other organisations think the same way but are hesitant to take the plunge with apprenticeships – speak to NSAR today about how we can employ your apprentices for you through Apprenticeship Agency.
Finally, I am pleased to announce that NSAR has once again passed our International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 44001 audit. ISO 44001 investigates how an organisation is effectively collaborating internally and externally. The ISO 44001 framework gives us the discipline to be a consistently good partner. It signals that we have the right processes in place to effectively collaborate and achieve shared goals. This is a big accomplishment, especially for a small organisation like NSAR. Congratulations to the whole team.Â
Neil Robertson
NSAR Chief ExecutiveÂ